Book Reviewing: How to Write One
A book review is usually a form of critical analysis in which a book review is simply analyzed or simply described according to style, content, and merit. Book reviews normally appear in print or online literature and are generally accompanied by a book review essay, by the book’s publisher, or both. Although some writers have no issue with book reviews, others view them as an opportunity to advertise their own books and can use them to promote their book tour, to comment on other writer’s works, or to respond to negative book reviews.
Books reviews are a way for readers to become acquainted with a work of art in as unbiased a manner as possible. This is not to say that a book review cannot take a certain angle, such as a commercial one. The review should examine the book from the perspective of its author and the publisher. A book review should examine the contents of the book, the writing style, the culture, demographics, social references, the politics, social beliefs, the theme, the plot, the characters, the themes of the stories, the setting and time period of the book, the one star rating and/or number of pages per volume and where it is published. In addition, a book review should also evaluate the relevance of the book’s themes, theories and models to current popular interests.
However, a book review should not be considered as a whole by itself. Rather, it should be seen as a tool to help the reader understand a work of art – to gain a deeper understanding of the text and to learn more about its overall quality as well. The purpose of a book review is to draw the reader’s attention to specific aspects of a book – to emphasize a literary or genre factor, or to identify an aspect of the author’s personality, to criticize the writing style or format, or to show the readers how the author has managed to structure the work. For this reason, book reviews are very specific in their purpose and are aimed at drawing the reader’s attention to particular characteristics of the work. While these aspects can be viewed as personal rather than overall, the reviewer usually uses a subjective approach to highlight a specific quality of the book.
A book review aims to provide the reader with information about the content, layout, structure and format of the work, including its main or central theme, central ideas, themes and theories, message, characters, performances, plot, setting, references and other related areas. In essence, the review highlights the relevance of the work to the general reader. For instance, if the work has a strong emotional content, the reviewer will discuss the effect the emotional content has on the reader, i.e., what it does not accomplish, how it affects the reader’s ability to relate to the text, how it differs from other texts, etc. The primary purpose of the research problem is to show the reader what the author’s research shows was the deciding factor in determining the outcome of the work.
Reviews have been an important part of literature since its inception. Prior to the twentieth century, book reviews emphasized a book’s structure, plot, language, images, etc., or cited by the author, noting its importance to the field. During the twentieth century, book reviews became more standardized, often identifying particular genres or publishing houses. While it remains a core component of book reviews today, reviewing has developed into a much broader profession with multiple sub-disciplines, including qualitative review, quantitative review, cultural theory review, political theory review and personality-based review. In recent years, however, a new term has emerged in the field: Techno-Review.
Techno-review refers to book reviews written for the web, aimed at increasing website traffic and helping to promote book reports by the same authors. The reader will get a rich selection of book reviews, usually organized by subject, genre, author, publication date, etc. (books listed alphabetically by last name are not included). The book reviews are normally very detailed, containing recommendations for readers to choose their next book, a description of the book, a short list of pros and cons, a conclusion and a link to the website where the book can be purchased. The book reviews may also include links to social media sites, podcasts and possibly links to book sales and promotions.
A book review should adhere to some basic requirements. It should be written in simple, colloquial language that is easy for readers to understand. The reviewer should not necessarily focus on the technical aspects of the book (e.g., plot, character development, etc. ), but should highlight its value to the reader through its engaging writing style. The reviewer should also follow a standard formatting pattern. He should use standard font sizes and should allow for a reasonable size to type out his comments.
A preface is not as important as a foreword, because the foreword addresses the reader directly and is usually an endorsement of the author. The preface, on the other hand, may serve as a review of the author’s own work, highlighting the subject matter and significance of the writer’s perspective on it. A preface should not be longer than one page. It is an introspective discussion of the author’s subject matter and does not provide additional information about the characters, plot, or events in the book. Lastly, a bibliography provides a list of resources consulted in support of the text. It lists the sources listed by various writers in support of the text and may contain more footnotes than a foreword.